Tsujimura Shiro initially intended to study painting at art college in Tokyo, but was inspired by a visit to the Japan Folk Craft Museum in Tokyo in 1965 to work with ceramics. He went on to build his own workshop and kiln in Mima, Nara City. He is unusual amongst Japanese potters in that he is self-taught. He works within a variety of traditional methods, re-creating traditional unglazed high-fired Shigaraki and Iga wares, as well as Shino and kohiki glazes, finding inspiration in both Japanese and Korean traditions. He reimagines these traditional wares in innovative new expressions, particularly valuing the unpredictability of the firing. He is well known for his tea bowls, as well as his larger scale jars with their dynamic wood ash markings. He travelled to the UK in 1993, building a kiln in West Devon, and held an exhibition at Galerie Besson in London the following year. His works are held in public collections including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
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